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Raphaël Varane
| cityofbirth = Lille | countryofbirth = France | dateofdeath = | cityofdeath = | countryofdeath = | height = | position = Centre back | currentclub = Real Madrid | clubnumber = 5 | youthyears = 2000–2002 2002–2010 | youthclubs = Hellemmes Lens | years = 2010–2011 2011– | clubs = Lens Real Madrid | caps(goals) = 23 (2) 189 (6) | nationalyears = 2010 2012 2011–2012 2013– | nationalteam = France U18 France U20 France U21 France | nationalcaps(goals) = 2 (1) 1 (0) 16 (4) 64 (5) | manageryears = | managerclubs = }} Raphaël Xavier Varane (born 25 April 1993) is a French professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Spanish club Real Madrid and the France national team. Varane started out with rugby, but later he switched to football. He signed for the local club AS Hellemmes, aged 7. Two years later, he joined professional club, RC Lens. Varane quickly ascended up the club's youth ranks, playing on the under-16 and under-19 teams, and winning the Championnat National des 16 ans with the former. He began his professional football career there, being promoted to the senior team in 2010. In the same year, he made his professional debut on 7 November in a Ligue 1 match against Montpellier. Although his team was relegated in that season, the 2010–11 season was a breakthrough campaign for him. In the summer of 2011, Varane signed a six-year contract with Spanish giants, Real Madrid, for a transfer fee reported to be around €10 million. He made his full debut for the club in the pre-season tournament 2011 World Football Challenge match against American side LA Galaxy. His league debut with Real Madrid came on 21 September, in the match against Racing Santander. He has made over 300 appearances in all competitions for the club and won several major trophies, including two league titles and four Champions League titles. At only 24 years of age, the prodigy has cemented his place alongside Sergio Ramos at the heart of Real’s defense after producing outstanding defensive performances. Varane was a France youth international, having earned caps at under-18, under-20 and under-21 level. He made his full international debut in March 2013 and represented the country at the 2014 FIFA World Cup. After an admirable performance during the tournament he was nominated for the Best Young Player award. He won the 2018 FIFA World Cup in which he played every minute of every game. Varane has been described by Lens youth coach Eric Assadourian as a "truly first class player" who is "comfortable on both the tactical and technical level". Many ex players and current football managers, such as Fernando Hierro and José Mourinho, consider Varane to be one of the best defenders in world football. Honours Real Madrid *La Liga: 2011–12, 2016–17 *Copa del Rey: 2013–14 *Supercopa de España: 2012, 2017, 2019–20 *UEFA Champions League: 2013–14, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18 *UEFA Super Cup: 2014, 2016, 2017 *FIFA Club World Cup: 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018 France * FIFA World Cup: 2018 Individual * FIFA FIFPro World11: 2018 * FIFA FIFPro World11 3rd team: 2015, 201 * FIFA FIFPro World11 4th team: 2016 * FIFA FIFPro World11 5th team: 2014 * FIFA FIFPro World11 nominee: 2019 (12th defender) * UEFA Champions League Squad of the Season: 2017–18 * FIFA World Cup Dream Team: 2018 * World Cup Fantasy McDonald's Overall XI: [[2018 FIFA World Cup#Awards|2018] * UEFA Defender of the Season – Runner-up: 2018 * UEFA Team of the Year: 2018 * IFFHS Men's World Team: 2018 Orders *Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur: 2018 External links *Real Madrid official profile * *Raphaël Varane profile at Transfermarkt *Raphaël Varane biography at Lifebogger.com Category:1993 births Category:Living people Category:Players Category:Defenders Category:French players Category:France youth international players Category:France under-21 international players Category:France international players Category:RC Lens players Category:Real Madrid C.F. players Category:Ligue 1 players Category:La Liga players Category:2014 FIFA World Cup players Category:2018 FIFA World Cup players Category:FIFA World Cup-winning players